Peter Miniutti of Ashbury was relieved to report that “For the first time for as long as I can remember, I didn’t read an item in C8 about the first sighting of hot cross buns.” About the same time this missive arrived, our colleagues over the way in Herald letters, fielded the following from Heather Johnson of West Pennant Hills: “Could I be the first to claim a hot cross bun sighting? Coles, West Pennant Hills, December, 28.”
While Jenny Stephenson of Wollongong thinks “with the uttermost Column 8 respect” that Alan Eason (C8) “sounds like a tautology party pooper,” Col Burns of Lugarno thanks him “for helping me make forward progress in my understanding of tautology by providing two lessons one after the other in succession.”
“I don’t know if the applicant was a victim of spellchecker (C8) or a poor education, but I once had a woman submit a CV for a teaching position, and under her personal qualities she listed her involvement in Sunday school where she taught young children to sing ‘hymens’,” recalls Grant Heaton of Port Macquarie.
“In the early ’90s we had a lovely lady called Anna who had an Italian surname (starting with B) working with us,” writes Mark Fuller of Armidale. “When her name was entered into the word processor it was changed to Anal Brush. It made for much merriment, but was a bit of a bummer.”
Stewart Copper of Maroubra notes that while “Balgowlah Heights may have its arrogant bush turkeys (C8), patrons at the Sydney Fish Market on Christmas Eve were amused to see a not-so-small pelican plodding around with them. The bird appeared to be totally at home and was not a bit intimidated by the crowd. Unlike the bush turkey, on arrival, he waited for cars to pass before making his way behind them. Perhaps regulars may have seen him before, but some patrons received a bit of a start when they noticed his nibs wandering along beside them.”
Aside from garnering some amusement from one newsreader’s report of a “raft” of retirements from the Sydney Hobart Yacht Race, George Zivkovic of Northmead thinks “You have to tip your sailor’s hat to the impartiality and fair play of the boat race that starts every Boxing Day: ‘The Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race is a classic long ocean race open to anyone who owns a yacht’.”
Column8@smh.com.au
No attachments, please. Include
name, suburb and daytime phone